The Planning Authority is on Wednesday expected to approve the conversion of two newly-built villas in Wied Għomor into a guesthouse - despite the guesthouse already operating for more than three months.
 
The guesthouse called The Valley, on Triq Mikiel Ang Borg close to Spinola Bay, has been accepting bookings since at least the start of June, according to reviews on Booking.com and promotional photos dated to the end of May.
 
This despite the owners only having planning permission for newly-built residential villas and swimming pools, which were approved in place of dilapidated structures by successive permits in 2017 and 2018.
 
The Environment and Resources Authority (ERA) said the previous applications were merely “stepping stones leading to this proposal”. 

An application to change the use of the buildings to a 12-room guesthouse was filed last year, shortly after the previous permit was approved, and is due to be decided by the Planning Commission board on Wednesday. 

The PA case officer has recommended the application for approval but he made no mention - in a report dated July 30 - of the fact that the guesthouse had already been operating for months without a permit. 

ERA, which had objected to both previous permits , lamented that its concerns had been “disregarded”, reiterated its concerns and objections to the latest plans. 

“This piecemeal development outside the development zone, including this proposal, have a cumulative effect on similar developments outside the development area,” the environment watchdog said. 

The structure was originally approved as two villas with pools in 2017, which ERA has called a 'stepping stone' to the present development. Photo: Booking.com.

It warned that the development of the site had already resulted in an undesirable take-up of ODZ land, and said the guesthouse plans would set an “undesirable precedent” for similar proposals.

The St Julian’s and Swieqi local councils are also objecting to the plans, as are environmental groups Flimkien għal Ambjent Aħjar, Din l-Art Ħelwa and Nature Trust. 

This piecemeal development outside the development zone, including this proposal, have a cumulative effect on similar developments

Objectors argue that planning policy does not allow for commercial development in the area, and that the change of use will increase the number of people in the building, leaving a “drastic impact” on Wied Għomor. 

They also argue that light and sound pollution will have a negative impact on the surrounding area, natural fauna and habitats, and that the area currently offers open public spaces for families to enjoy the countryside. 

However, the PA case officer concluded that the proposal did not include any extensions or additional land take-up compared to what had already been approved on-site, and that guesthouse conversions were more favourably considered than residential under planning policy.

The case officer also cited the project architect’s argument that the guesthouse would lead to a “wider environmental benefit” as accommodation would be more regulated than it would with two villas that could be independently rented out. 

The architect said the amount of guests at any one time would be limited, and that use as a guest house would also guarantee better upkeep of the property, landscaped outdoor areas and surrounding areas. 

The guesthouse is the latest in a long line of development applications in Wied Għomor - a scheduled site of scientific and ecological importance - in recent years, all of which have been consistently opposed by the councils of nearby localities.

A five-storey guesthouse on the valley side in St Julian’s was approved last year on a site, originally a dilapidated building, which, like the new application, had first been granted permission for a villa.